Becoming a Board Certified Specialist in State and Federal Criminal Law

Non-lawyers are often curious how one becomes a legal specialist. Below is information about the standards that must be met to become board certified as a specialist in state and federal criminal law. The rigorous application and testing process helps explain why only a small share of North Carolina lawyers hold this certification.

As the NC State Bar Board of Legal Specialization states, “Hiring a board certified legal specialist helps to ensure that your lawyer is proficient in the specialty legal field in which you have a legal need. When you are looking for a lawyer, you can use board certification to identify lawyers who are qualified to represent you.

In other words, board certification is an indication that the lawyer has intentionally focused his or her legal practice to improve the proficiency and quality of the lawyer’s legal services and to stay current in the specialty field.

Moreover, board certification, unlike the self-laudatory information in advertising and marketing, is a credential that you can rely upon because it is based upon objective criteria.”

Read more about the Board of Legal Specialization here.

Summary of Standards

Licensure

Licensed and in good standing to practice law in North Carolina as of the date of application.

Substantial Involvement in Criminal Law

During the five years preceding application:

• Average of at least 500 hours a year.
• Minimum of 400 hours for any one year.

Alternatively, practice equivalents may be accepted for the following:

• service as a law professor for one year
• service as a federal, state or tribal court judge for one year.

Additional information required regarding: (A) representation during the applicant’s entire legal career in criminal trials concluded by jury verdict; (B) representation as principal counsel of record in federal felony cases or state felony cases (Class G or higher) (C) court appearances in other substantive criminal proceedings in criminal courts of any jurisdiction; and (D) representation in appeals of decisions to the North Carolina Court of Appeals, the North Carolina Supreme Court, or any federal appellate court.

Continuing Legal Education

During the three years preceding application:

• At least 40 hours of accredited CLE in criminal law, which must include the following:
  • at least 34 hours in skills pertaining to criminal law, such as evidence, substantive criminal law, criminal procedure, criminal trial advocacy, and criminal trial tactics;
  • at least 6 hours in the area of ethics and criminal law.

Peer Review

First, the applicant must provide the names of ten lawyers or judges who practice in the field of criminal law and are familiar with the competence and qualification of the applicant in criminal law.

Second, the applicant must also provide a list of opposing counsel and judges in eight recent cases tried to verdict or entry of order.

In addition, all references must be licensed and in good standing to practice law.

However, a reference may not be related by blood or marriage to the applicant nor may the reference be a colleague at the applicant’s place of employment at the time of the application.

Exam

6 hours long (two 3-hour sessions).

Finally, the examination shall cover the applicant’s knowledge in the following topics in criminal law, and/or in the subspecialty of state criminal law, as the applicant has elected:

(A) the North Carolina and Federal Rules of Evidence;

(B) state and federal criminal procedure and state and federal laws affecting criminal procedure;

(C) constitutional law;

(D) appellate procedure and tactics;

(E) trial procedure and trial tactics;

(F) criminal substantive law;

Tested Topics

State Topics:

• Admissibility of testimony
• Justice Reinvestment Act
• Admissible evidence
• Jury considerations
• Automatic appeal
• Jury selection
• Business record introduction
• Lesser-included offenses
• Collateral consequences (to include license and insurance consequences)
• Motion for joinder
• Confidential communication between Attorney and client
• Offense classification and sentencing enhancements (emphasis given with multiple questions)
• Criminal history categories
• Pretrial release
• Criminal record
• Probation
• DWI (emphasis given with multiple questions to include pertinent case law)
• Search warrant
• Ethics
• Sex Offender Registration
• Evidence Rule 803(4)
• Structured sentencing act
• Good faith reliance
• Subpoena for witness
• Grand jury testimony
• Trial procedure
• Impeaching a witness
• Validity of search
• Infractions
• Witness interview procedures
• Insanity/diminished capacity

State and Federal Section:

• Consent to Search
• Misdemeanor statute of limitations
• Defense strategies
• Motion for new trial
• Domestic violence
• Motion to Suppress
• DWI (emphasis given with multiple questions to include pertinent case law)
• Plea agreement
• Enhanced punishment
• Post-conviction relief
• State Rules of Evidence
• Rules of professional conduct
• Federal proffered plea agreements
• Satellite-based hearings
• Federal Rules of Evidence
• Sex offender registration
• Federal Sentencing Guidelines
• Trial procedure
• Felony statutes of limitations
• Trial scheduling
• Grand Jury
• Trust accounts
• Jencks Act (18 U.S.C §3500)
• Venue options
• Mandatory minimum sentences
• Witness impeachment

About the Author

Daniel Donahue is a Board Certified Specialist in State and Federal Criminal Law, certified by the North Carolina State Bar Board of Legal Specialization, and the only board-certified criminal law specialist based in Dare County. Learn more about Mr. Donahue and his criminal defense and DWI practice in Dare and Currituck County.

Daniel Donahue, along with nine other National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers members and their guests gathered Jan. 19, 2016, in the nation’s capital at the U.S. Supreme Court for NACDL’s group admissions ceremony. NACDL President E.G. “Gerry” Morris made the motion for admission to the Supreme Court Bar. Pictured from left to right are Linda Lee McCausland, Britt Morton Cobb, Robin Sax Katzenstein, Julio A. Jaramillo, Gerry Morris, Daniel P. Donahue, Gabriel Reyes, Don A. Thompson, Cynthia C. Chappell, Sarah Thomas Kovoor, and Jessica N. Carmichael.

What Admission to the Supreme Court Bar Means

Admission to the Supreme Court bar allows a lawyer to practice before the Supreme Court of the United States. Under the Court’s Rule 5, an applicant needs at least three years of admission to practice in the highest court of a state. The applicant must also be in good standing and show good moral and professional character. In addition, two members of the Supreme Court bar must sponsor each applicant.

Group ceremonies like the one organized by the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers let members take the oath together in the courtroom. Admission is a professional milestone, but it does not change the firm’s focus. Donahue Criminal Defense handles DWI, traffic, and criminal cases at the trial level in Dare and Currituck County, plus federal criminal cases in the Eastern District of North Carolina.

If you face a charge in the Outer Banks, call or text 252-715-5785 for a free consultation.

In late July 2015, Daniel Donahue joined members of the National College for DUI Defense at Harvard Law School. They met in Austin Hall for an intensive one-week Harvard DUI seminar. Members from around the country came to discuss the newest defenses in the nation. The week focused on the science behind DUI and DWI testing and how to challenge it.

Donahue says, “You cannot make sense of the science because it is all pretty flawed. It was eye-opening to be part of a large group of professionals. All of them understood that much of DWI science is ‘junk science’ geared at convictions and revenue. I walked away more knowledgeable. If we lawyers can teach judges and juries some of what we know, we can really help the people who deserve it.”

Donahue is now back in northeast North Carolina defending DWI and other criminal cases throughout Dare and Currituck County. Learn more about DWI defense and breath and field sobriety tests.

Why DWI Science Matters in Your Case

Most DWI cases in North Carolina rest on science. Breath tests on the EC/IR II, blood tests, and roadside field sobriety tests all follow set rules. When an officer or analyst skips a step, the defense can challenge the result.

Training like the Harvard DUI seminar helps a defense lawyer spot those problems. For example, a lawyer can check how long the officer watched the driver before the breath test. The lawyer can also check the instrument’s maintenance records and how the officer gave each field test. Learn more about breath tests and field sobriety tests.

Facing a DWI charge in Dare or Currituck County? Call or text 252-715-5785 to talk about the evidence.